Analyzing and refuting the inaccuracies lodged against the lgbt community by religious conservative organizations. Lies in the name of God are still lies.

Friday, February 27, 2015

Anti-gay Family Research Council moves on to another discredited researcher

Mark Regenerus - FRC's newest discredited researcher?

For years, the Family Research Council was one of the many anti-gay groups who relied on the work of discredited researcher Paul Cameron, a man who had been criticized for poor techniques methodologies, as well as dismissed or censured from organization such as the American Psychological Association, the American Sociological Association, and the Canadian Psychological Association

FRC and other anti-gay groups used his bad research to prove negative theories about the lgbt community However, when Cameron was exposed for being the fraud that he is, FRC and other anti-gay groups slyly distanced themselves from his work.

According to a recent email I received from the organization, however, FRC may have found another discredited researcher it can use:

Yesterday, respected University of Texas professor Dr. Mark Regnerus
spoke at FRC about "Stability and Change in Americans' Relationships."
His presentation was based on an exhaustive survey he conducted of more
than 15,700 people from every background and walk of life. The survey's
findings showed some change in Americans' attitudes towards marriage,
cohabitation, and homosexuality, but one of the most striking findings
is that only 42 percent of the American people support same-sex
marriage, a percentage that roughly mirrors FRC's survey, released
earlier this week, showing that 53 percent of people agree that marriage should be defined only as a union between one man and one woman.

Despite the sexual revolution of the past several decades, less than
half (44 percent) of Americans believe cohabitation before marriage is a
good thing. And as to infidelity, a whopping 74 percent say adultery is
never acceptable. Dr. Regnerus noted that "so much is up for grabs" but
made clear that religious commitment and the strength of one's family
"track together."

"Marriage is not considered outdated," Dr. Regnerus observed, and
"people regard marriage as concerning children." As the Supreme Court
ponders same-sex "marriage" later this year, let's hope and pray their
listening to those they have been appointed to represent -- the American
people -- when it comes to redefining an institution still held in high
regard throughout our society.

Regnerus is NOT respected. He is the author of a 2012 badly done, much rebuked, disputed, and discredited negative study on same-sex parenting.

There was also the fact that Regnerus received funding for the study from two groups, the Witherspoon Institute and Lynde and
Harry Bradley Foundation, who are actively attempting to stop marriage equality from becoming a reality.

According to The American Independent, by way of The Huffington Post, the organizations which funded Regnerus's work deliberately timed its release to influence the Supreme Court's ruling on marriage equality cases, a plan which failed miserably.

Last year, in ruling against Michigan's anti-marriage equality law, US District Judge Bernard Friedman also rebuked Regnerus, who was testifying for the state:

“The Court finds Regnerus’s testimony entirely unbelievable and not
worthy of serious consideration. The evidence adduced at trial
demonstrated that his 2012 ‘study’ was hastily concocted at the behest
of a third-party funder, which found it ‘essential that the necessary
data be gathered to settle the question in the forum of public debate
about what kinds of family arrangement are best for society’ and which
‘was confident that the traditional understanding of marriage will be
vindicated by this study.’ … While Regnerus maintained that the funding
source did not affect his impartiality as a researcher, the Court finds
this testimony unbelievable. The funder clearly wanted a certain result,
and Regnerus obliged.”

Regnerus respected? Hardly. But he is just the right fit for the fakery of the Family Research Council.

1 comment:

Once upon a time, Paul Cameron was viewed as a go-to source for FRC and others for gay-related "research" (a term used very loosely), but in recent years, Cameron's name and his research methods have become more well-known, so anti-LGBT activists have turned to other sources for similar "research" including the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH) which Southern Poverty Law Center addressed at http://bit.ly/1glJ8iA . These aren't the only sources, but Mr. Regnerus is another willing provider of similar junk-science, and whether he realizes it or not, he's made a name for himself on this front which will limit his future opportunities as a researcher, hence he is not generally recognized in the scientific/social science community as a reputable source.

About Me

Alvin McEwen is 46-year-old African-American gay man who resides in Columbia, SC.
McEwen's blog, Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters, and writings have been mentioned by Americablog.com, Goodasyou.org, People for the American Way, PageOneQ.com, The Washington Post, Raw Story, The Advocate, Media Matters for America, Crooksandliars.com, Thinkprogress.org, Andrew Sullivan's Daily Dish, Melissa Harris-Perry, The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell, Newsweek, The Daily Beast, The Washington Blade, and Foxnews.com.
In addition, he is also a past contributor to Pam's House Blend,Justice For All, LGBTQ Nation, and Alternet.org. He is a present contributor to the Daily Kos and the Huffington Post,
He is the 2007 recipient of the Harriet Daniels Hancock Volunteer of the Year Award and the 2010 recipient of the Order of the Pink Palmetto from the SC Pride Movement as well as the 2009 recipient of the Audre Lorde/James Baldwin Civil Rights Activist Award from SC Black Pride. In addition, he is a three-time nominee of the Ed Madden Media Advocacy Award from SC Pride.